Mylan seeks more generic market share

US generics group Mylan Laboratories, which completed its 4.9 billion-euro ($7.55 billion) acquisition of Merck Generiques late last year (Marketletter December 17, 2007), has said it expects to gain further market share this year. Didier Barret, president of the group's French subsidiary and now responsible for the business in Europe and Africa, noted that Mylan had no presence in France and that the team at Merck Generiques was being supported by the new US parent.

Last year, Mr Barret added, the gaps with competitors Biogaran and Swiss drug major Novartis' Sandoz unit had been closed and Mylan now has 29% of generics turnover in France, ahead of Biogaran with 23%. Sales rose 22% last year to 588.0 million euros in a market which expanded 19% overall. Operating profits figures are not being disclosed but Mr Barret said the figure had been positive for the past five years.

The current year has seen low prices enforced by the government to reduce the health budget deficit, but six major pharmaceutical products will come off patent including Wyeth's anti-depressant Effexor (venlafaxine) and Schering-Plough's anti-allergy agent Claritin (loratadine). The generics sector will be competing for the extra sales released by these patent expiries. Mr Barret has stressed that the potential for growth in the copycat sector remains high in the national market, especially as generics currently account for just 20% of pharmaceuticals in volume terms compared with 40% to 60% in northern Europe as a whole.